Russia will display its new S-400 air defense missile system for the first time at a major air show outside Moscow on August 21-26, a spokesman for the event said Thursday.
MAKS-2007 is an aviation exhibition held every two years in the town of Zhukovsky, which hosts a military airbase. The event is expected to attract over 540 Russian companies and at least 200 foreign firms from over 30 countries this year.
"We are planning to display the [S-400] system as a stationary exhibit for both experts and regular visitors," the spokesman said.
The S-400 Triumf (NATO codename SA-21 Growler) is a new air defense missile system developed by the Almaz Central Design Bureau as an upgrade of the S-300 family.
Russia successfully conducted on July 12-13 live firing tests of S-400 air defense complex at the Kapustin Yar firing range in south Russia`s Astrakhan Region, and deployed a battalion equipped with the new system to protect the airspace around the capital, Moscow.
The S-400 has been designed to intercept and destroy airborne targets at a distance of up to 400 kilometers (250 miles), or twice the range of the U.S. MIM-104 Patriot, and 2.5 times that of the S-300PMU-2.
The system is believed to have high capability for destroying stealth aircraft, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles with an effective range of up to 3,500 kilometers (2,200 miles), and a speed of up to 4.8 kilometers (3 miles) per second.
Experts believe that the ability to intercept and destroy cruise missiles and ballistic missiles makes S-400 Triumf a crucial part of theater missile defenses.
A regular S-400 battalion comprises at least eight launchers and 32 missiles and a mobile command post, according to various sources.
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